Corona Diaries 28: An Indian Summer With A Difference

It’s summer. The sun is in a pernicious mood. Hot air hits your face in rude blasts. When it stops, searing heat takes over, trying to bake you alive. The aquamarine sky hangs clear and bright. Wispy cirrus clouds run aimlessly around. The ground below is crunchy with dead dry leaves in many shades of brown. Animals seek shelter from the heat, squirrels and birds in the foliage above and dogs and cattle on the ground. The silence around carries a hint of resignation. It’s only 11 in the morning.
It’s summer as usual. And we know how summers are supposed to be. This year it’s a little beyond the usual though. You feel it in the ambience. The air is like whiplash but it is not loaded with the odour of toxicity. The heat scorches but it is more bearable in the absence of the blanket of pollutants somewhere not so far away in the atmosphere. You can see the busy clouds clearly. The silence is serene and continuous with no blow horn or siren piercing it every few seconds. The naturalness in nature is making its presence felt. Any city dweller would be clueless as to when it was so last.
Nature has got a respite from man in the last few months. And it’s back to being beautiful. Rivers are flowing clean again; mountain peaks are visible from many miles away; air in big cities is safe to breathe after a long time; and wildlife move about in spaces under human encroachment. With people stuck in their homes, Nature is busy putting its own version of order in place. And it’s a delight. It only highlights how distanced mankind has been from nature all these years.
How long will this last? The question ushers in a sense of trepidation. We know it’s a small relief for Nature. Soon mankind will be back with all its destructive energy. Nature will turn the silent, sombre victim again. Summers won’t be as good ever.
AND PURE FLOW THE RIVERS
The glorious Ganga flows pure as it continues its sinuous journey through rocky terrains and the plains. It would be apt to add ‘again’ to highlight ‘pure’ in the sentence. Because the holy river believed to cleanse all sins of people taking a dip in its waters, has not been too pure itself over the decades. For newer generations the purity of the river would have remained a myth but for the last few weeks of lockdown and partial suspension of human activities along its banks. Experts say the river looks clean and its water drinkable at several upstream points now. It no more smells foul and aquatic animal have surfaced in good numbers.

The second most important in the Hindu trinity of sacred rivers, the Yamuna, almost a dead river sometime ago, has experienced a similar rejuvenation. The migratory birds are back, so are domestic avian guests and fish. In case of both the rivers, simple withdrawal of human activity for a few days has achieved what crores of rupees spent on dedicated projects have failed to deliver. In fact, it has been a heart-warming tale for all rivers in the country. They are healthier than earlier. It is ironical that a some credit for it has to go to a killer disease on the prowl.
It’s a wonderful story of nature healing itself. It only needs some breathing space.
AIR MINUS THE TOXIC BAGGAGE

It is not soft breeze carrying the freshness of a new morning that welcomes you as you open the doors in most parts of the National Capital. A blast of a bizarre concoction of toxic gases hits you in the face. It is the familiar smell of burnt fuel, dust, smoke and much more that go on to explain the word pollution. Winter months are the worst here, but there is scant respite in other parts of the year.
In a city where ‘very poor’ air quality is a reason for minor celebration, simply because it is not in the ‘severe’ or ‘severe-plus’ category, this summer is different. Air Quality Index is ‘moderate’, which is in the range of 100-200 compared to the normal 401-500 range which is ‘severe’. The air one inhales is certainly cleaner. You feel the absence of noxious chemicals and dust. Air pollution is down in all cities and cases of normal respiratory diseases are lower, say news reports.
If only we could freeze this situation, barring the Covid-19 intervention of course.
ALL GOOD STORIES MUST END

Is it too good a story to continue forever? Sadly, all happy stories have to end. Soon, mankind will be out with vengeance. Vehicles will be on the roads in their thousands, factories will spew toxic gases, industrial effluents will flow into rivers, construction activity will saturate the air with dust particles and trees in forests will make way for whatever goes in the name of development. We will have grand platitudes about saving nature for future generations while continuing our relentless assault on it.

The current situation is steeped in irony. It’s a rogue element in the nature that has left us in suspended animation; it is the same force that has served as cure for a wounded nature. Is it a case of unintended consequences or nature’s elaborate conspiracy? We will never know. But all good stories have to end.